By Bob Allen Terri Byrd has been elected as full-time coordinator of the Alabama Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, effective Dec. 1. Byrd, an ordained minister, is the fourth person to lead the statewide network of about 30 churches, and the first…
Kentucky Baptist agency won’t hire gays
By Bob Allen The board of directors of a Kentucky Baptist child care agency voted Nov. 8 against a proposal to drop its ban on hiring gays. “Let us be clear about this vote,” said Joyce Smith, board chair of…
CBF responds to Philippines typhoon
By Jeff Brumley Leaders of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship announced Friday it is partnering with an international aid group to provide funds and drinking water to victims of a typhoon that struck the Philippines earlier in the day. Typhoon Haiyan…
RFRA needed now more than ever
By Bob Allen A little-known federal law enacted to bolster the rights of religious minorities is less popular but more needed now than when it became law 20 years ago, the head of a broad coalition that worked for passage…
West recovery steady but painful
By Jeff Brumley At times, the citizens of West, Texas, are able to glimpse the light at the end of the tunnel in their recovery from the April factory explosion that cratered their city and lives. Slowly, homes are being…
Lawyer says religious liberty at risk
By Bob Allen Religious liberty is becoming a casualty of America’s culture wars, a leading expert on the separation of church and state told an audience Nov. 7 at the Newseum in Washington. “I certainly didn’t predict the last 20…
Ethicist says violence a moral option
By Ken Camp The use of deadly force can be justified in a broken world inhabited by “moral monsters,” Baptist ethicist Roger Olson told students at Baylor University’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary Nov. 6. “The kingdom of God is…
LifeWay apologizes to Asian-Americans
By Bob Allen The head of the Southern Baptist Convention’s publishing arm apologized Nov. 6 for a 10-year-old Asian-themed vacation Bible school curriculum that critics said promoted racial stereotypes. “Ten years ago LifeWay’s Vacation Bible School material used racial stereotypes…
Baptists issue disaster response appeals
By Jeff Brumley The needs for help are flowing in from Baptist disaster response leaders around the nation. The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Tommy Deal sent an e-mail blast Wednesday appealing for volunteers who can spare the time and energy to…
High court debates ‘legislative’ prayer
By Bob Allen A divided U.S. Supreme Court debated Nov. 6 whether explicitly Christian prayers at a New York town board’s meetings violate the constitutionally mandated separation of church and state. “What we heard this morning in the courtroom was…
Rigid worship agendas can become idolatry, says York
(ABP) — Agendas, even holy agendas, are not worthy of worship, Terry York is convinced. And when something else — anything else — takes the place of God as the focus of the church’s worship, it violates God’s commandment against…
Speakers predict sermons will change in the next wave of postmodern worship
Maybe the pulpit is a safe-house in the worship wars. In the past half century, evangelical worship has seen a lot of changes. Music styles have morphed, orders of service have flip-flopped, chalk talks gave way to PowerPoint presentations and…